Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of articles on the results from the End-of-course exams that were recently announced.
Beverly Ruthven, assistant superintendent for learning services, with the Pine Bluff School District, has only been in her post for a week, but is already busy assessing the strengths and weaknesses of district students and formulating a plan of action to bolster student achievement.
Ruthven noted that the performance of district junior and senior high school students on the spring 2012 Algebra I, Geometry and Biology end-of-course exams and eleventh grade Literacy exams has shown improvement overall from the past several years.
“The Algebra I and Geometry scores have really come up,” Ruthven said. “The combined percentages of students scoring at the proficient and advanced levels in Algebra jumped from 53 percent in 2010 to 68 percent in 2011 and then fell just a bit to 62 percent in 2012. On the Literacy exam we did come up several percentage points from 32 percent in 2011 to 39 percent in 2012.”
Ruthven said that the U.S. Department of Education approved a waiver request from the Arkansas Department of Education that will allow state school districts to switch from some of the Adequate Yearly Progress standards under the No Child Left Behind Act to a more achievable set of goals.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
“The waiver will allow schools to measure student achievement based more upon the growth of student groups within each school,” Ruthven said. “This is a better indicator of achievement than AYP.”
“There is a lot of work to be done and we will focus on academics and instruction and a commitment to the sense of urgency that we as a school district need to have in order to prepare our students for the future,” Ruthven said.
Test results
The end-of-course exams are criterion-referenced tests that are taken by students at the completion of a course of study to determine whether a student demonstrates attainment of the knowledge and skills necessary for mastery of that subject.
Criterion-referenced tests are customized around the Arkansas Curriculum Frameworks, which outline the goals and standards for each subject.
The test results divide students by percentage into four performance levels used to gauge student achievement; including advanced, proficient, basic and below basic.
The Arkansas Department of Education defines advanced as the demonstration of superior performance well beyond proficient grade-level performance; proficient as a demonstration of solid academic performance for the grade tested and being well prepared for the next level; basic as students who show substantial skills but only partially demonstrate the ability to apply these skills; and below basic as failing to show sufficient mastery to attain the basic level.
The score results for the 2011-2012, 2010-2011 and 2009-2010 school years are included here to allow for comparison.
Literacy
The Literacy exam is administered to 11th graders in March of each school year. The scores for Pine Bluff High School are included.
In March, 267 students took the exam, with 6 percent scoring at the advanced level; 33 percent proficient; 53 percent basic and 9 percent below basic.
In March 2011, 293 students took the exam, with 3 percent scoring at the advanced level; 29 percent proficient; 50 percent basic and 18 percent below basic.
In March 2010, 293 students took the exam, with none scoring at the advanced level; 29 percent proficient; 52 percent basic and 19 percent below basic.
Algebra I
The Algebra I end-of-course exam is administered in May of each school year. The scores for Jack Robey Junior High School are included. The scores for Pine Bluff High School were not offered for public review because 10 or fewer students took the exam and ADE regulations prohibit score releases that may inadvertently reveal a student’s identity.
In May, 251 students took the exam, with 13 percent scoring at the advanced level; 50 percent proficient; 31 percent basic and 6 percent below basic.
In May 2011, 206 students took the exam, with 21 percent scoring at the advanced level; 48 percent proficient; 23 percent basic and 8 percent below basic.
In May 2010, 250 students took the exam, with 7 percent scoring at the advanced level; 47 percent proficient; 42 percent basic and 4 percent below basic.
Geometry
The Geometry end-of-course exam is administered in April of each school year. The scores for Pine Bluff High School are included. The scores for Jack Robey Junior High School for 2012 are included. There were no score reports for Jack Robey JHS for the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 school years.
In April, 167 PBHS students took the exam, with 24 percent scoring at the advanced level; 43 percent proficient; 23 percent basic and 10 percent below basic.
In April, 45 JRJHS students took the exam, with 13 percent scoring at the advanced level; 73 percent proficient; 13 percent basic and none scoring below basic.
In April 2011, 184 PBHS students took the exam, with 13 percent scoring at the advanced level; 49 percent proficient; 32 percent basic and 7 percent below basic.
In April 2010, 197 PBHS students took the exam, with 8 percent scoring at the advanced level; 33 percent proficient; 42 percent basic and 18 percent below basic.
Biology
The Biology end-of-course exam is administered in April of each school year. The scores for Pine Bluff High School are included.
In April, 272 students took the exam, with 2 percent scoring at the advanced level; 14 percent proficient; 34 percent basic; 51 percent below basic.
In April 2011, 301 students took the exam, with 1 percent scoring at the advanced level; 13 percent proficient; 38 percent basic and 47 percent below basic.
In April 2010, 294 students took the exam, with none scoring at the advanced level; 10 percent proficient; 40 percent basic and 49 percent below basic.